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The one big arena of the southern capital had been constrict only a few districts away from the pyramid and, despite the cultural importance of duels and other shows of strengths, it hadn’t quite seen the same decorum compared to a certain architectural wonder in the middle of the city. Not to say southerners couldn’t be proud of this place; a big, round sandy coliseum regularly renovated time and time again for events gathered curious tourist and aficionado from all over the island and easily became one of the big reason why the entire area grew so fast – and why, right now, at around ten in the morning, it was packed to the brim with Onis, lizards and other monstergirls despite the crusade.

Nobody condone a bout to the death but yesterday argument and resolution created an underlying rumor to my issued challenge – people inevitably expected blood loss and, while death isn’t stranger to the arena viciously assaulted one another until death do us part has never been popular with the Onis- this time however, it was a fight between lizards, the conquerors of the South, and everyone expectation were as wild as the crusade itself.

I knew what awaited me outside this ‘’warrior cabin’’ (as they call it) would be nothing more than sands inside a round arena, right now it was simply time for some preliminary- tardy nobles taking their seats, people hooting and hollering on this fine morning, the spectators were ready but time was still given for the warriors to truly prepare themselves in silence and aside from some shakes, this fresh, stony dark room was bereft of the effervescent noises of the excited crowd, this was in essence, the phase for retreat – the silence allowed to warriors.

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Not that I was alone, guests were allowed (after being thoroughly investigated, of course) and these people were the ones to carry the chalice for the sacred alcohol that’d, in theory bestow me the favors of our ancestors, the dragon or Mother Earth. Last time, Ame held the cup and stayed in me in the dark, now, it was Sylphis holding the drink in a silver pitcher and I reached for it mechanically with this blue transparent arm of mine; the slime had stayed silent after receiving Zechariah blessing.

‘’I made sure it wasn’t poisoned’’

‘’You…drank it?’’

‘’Yep, in front of the priest and everyone that bothered to look. There are hundreds of people out there, too.’’

Without light this cabin will be completely obscured, thankfully a few magical plants had been put there to thrive – Everblues gave this retreat an enchanting blue light and this same backdrop made Sylphis smug smile nearly surreal.

‘’You know that’s a faux-pas’’

I heard Aurore snicker as I grasped the pitcher as gently as I could, Sylphis seem reluctant to let go and took this opportunity to step closer, her second hand snuck to pat my the top of my head, the exoskeleton covering her finger did nothing to remove the warmth and comfort of the gesture and of course I felt a surge of embarrassment, which prompted me to step back and immediately gurgle a welcomed swig of this ‘’sacred’’ alcohol straight from the source despite an accompanying cup resting on a table.

‘’Don’t care; I don’t trust any of em, lizards or demons so they can all go straight to hell about their traditions’’

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Sylphis face showed true intensity as her jaw clenched dangerously as I silently returned the pitch – the liquid tasted strong and left a stinging sensation as it went down my throat.

‘’Not even Amarantha?’’ I finally asked as I fiddled with the slime arm, the girl in question letting out a few ‘’hey’’ in protest as I lightly knocked upon it and felt a returning sensation – simply last minutes checkup, trying my best to remove the knot in my stomach.

‘’I’ll leave her to Zech’’

Slowly, the mantis made her way toward the door that led further inside the bowels of the arena, she’d have to simply walk down the following corridor and make her way back upstairs, the fact she stepped outside in the sand was simply ceremonial, before opening the door she stopped to leer back my way, antennas moving twitching slightly.

‘’Athena, I just want you to know something. If the worse was to happen in this fight, I’ll kill that champion bitch even if it means war with South. I’ll take that over these people killing you like a dog to satisfy their egos, it’s high-time this thirty years old grudge die.’’

She probably heard many whispered insults about me, her mood was beyond fool – she was bloodthirsty and her hand was clenched dangerously around the handle of the door.

‘’I’ve no intention of losing Sylphis’’

‘’Yeah! We’ll crump that oversized lizard and get back home in time for diner!’’

Aurore chimed which earned a chuckle from my dear sister.

‘’I know. I just wanted to say it; I’ll be watching, sis, so be sure to show me why you’re still the stronger one’’

Quietly, Sylphis exited this little room of solitude as her words inevitably brought some reminiscence. The first time I encountered her, she ambushed and tried to kill me out of fear and rage and now, a good decade later, she’s grown into quite the amazing person… and little sister.

‘’No pressure…’’

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‘’…yep, none at all’’

It’s about time now.

>[Amarantha Amisis generosity allows you to pick out your arsenal. While Athena came down south with armaments, you can still chose to get something else, from armor to projectiles. State your equipment and we’ll proceed]

>Here is a character sheet/information for Athena. I tried my best to be as clear as possible and I intend to use this sort of format for everyone else as well, please tells me if there’s a need for more information. http://pastebin.com/3cGhy8dt

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>>36378799
Dual swords.

mylen still a best

>>36378799
sword and shield it what she is a master of

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>>36379097
Only two swords? You can be as greedy as you want in term of equipement here.
I wish I could read japanese for the new Majikoi

How best are we talking about?

>>36379178
Two scimitars, a dagger and a shield then maybe?

Unbeatable best

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I'll begin writing.

>>36379163
>>36379396

One scimitar as backup alongside the dagger? That's a pretty good set. curved swords are pretty popular with the lizards too.

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>>36379447
Sounds good. We should probably attempt to avoid using focus unless it becomes necessary. Or use it as a dirty surprise.

And here it is. Sorry I ain't been keeping up like I should.

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>>36379783
No need to be sorry, I'm late in my own prep, sheet making and short story.

Thank for your dilligence.
>>36379396
What do I need to do to satisfy you?

i have a question did siggy sleep with ame when she was in the hospital bed or was it just a kiss he gave her

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>>36379868
>What do I need to do to satisfy you?
have mylen survive

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>>36379891
Just a kiss, Ame kill people in her sleep unless being on meds (like she was in the swamp).

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>>36379942
That might be a little hard.

>>36379942
Sadly, there are only 3 essential people who *must* survive for any form of happy ending to occur. Tsu, Gil, and Lex. Everyone else? It'd be nice, but ultimately, they're expendable (including Siggy himself).

Don't get me wrong, I'm going for the ultimate happy ending where everyone's alive and happy too, but I realize it's a very tall order. Ah well, nothing truly satisfying was ever easy.

>>36380198
damn strait we going for the true happy ending

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>>36380296
>>36380198
Good luck.

>>36380374
Is Athena going into the fight with no armor?
Even if she can create a full suit of ice armor, it still takes 3 seconds to form, and constant mana/Focus upkeep.
Going in with no armor and only a shield sounds like we just reduced Athena's chances of success.

>>36380531
It's a trade off, you have obviously light armor and padding that goes without saying, but the magic armor is perfectly fitting to her body, whereas going in with something given to you by Amarantha wouldn't be as effective

>>36380581
Light armor and padding isn't going to help against the Salamander.

Can we keep moving during the three seconds that it takes the full armor to form? Or do we have to stand still?

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>>36380629
You can move

dose every one remember that flamboyant noble from the church's side that paid to have one of the queens captured and sent to him

if not just reminding every one that he need to die as well

>>36380679
The last time they fought, did the Salamander come out fully armored or only lightly armored?

>>36380789
That'll be answered in this upcoming update.

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>>36380718
Also wanted to buy Mylen off of us.

I remember that Barron Harkonnen wannabe. I'm sure we'll meet him again at some point.

It's on the agenda, but not something I'm prioritizing. Our victory in the coming battle and the last two bosses gotta die first. If he gets in the way of these objectives in a way that makes assassination viable, we simply eliminate him.

>>36380846
good i just didnt want people to forget about that sick fuck

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When do we get to kill more succubi

That's my favourite part of this quest.

>>36380917
Once we start the search and destroy missions for the Enemy Demon faction. Can't not run into those in those circumstances.

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Once this is over I’ll have to thank that little chieftain, even if she’s got quite a bit to gain politically from my victory she still offered a safe roof for sleeping and gave me equipment for this battle.

I’ve always preferred regular longsword despite the lizards affinity for spears and scimitars, I spent my entire childhood learning how to wield these peculiar weapons, time and experience also teach preparedness – an arena is no battlefield and it’s likely my weapon could break in battle with the champion, two blades and a backup dagger might feel overkill but, alongside the heavy round shield strapped to my good arm, I almost felt like my own champion, as if I’ve never left home.
Magic will take care of my armor.

‘’Hmm, I honestly thought you’d make your own weapons’’

My arm chippered as I twirled and tested my wrist – again this blue limb felt perfectly normal, as if I hadn’t lost anything at all. I’ll really miss her after this fight.

‘’Why not combine the two? Or hide my own magical talents if I can?’’

‘’Ya think? Pretty sure that champion knows after this morning stunt’’

Whatever words I had in store died in my throat when I felt a vibration in the very stones of the room itself alongside…something I can only describe as ‘’power’’ washed over me from the very center of the arena, a wave of prickling sensations originating from the topmost altar of the arena – no doubt about it, that was the starting gong.

‘’Then let’s hope she anticipate it, that could lead to a slip up.’’

--

>>36380967
Fuck yeah I'm hype.

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The warm sand sneaking between my scales and clawed felt surprisingly good, although this heat felt like a sucker punch compared to the fresh coolness of that dark place of seclusion; silence greeted my entry but the massive, round-shaped arena was filled to the brim just like I expected and even if I was very unpopular, nobody seemed eager to boo quite yet – instead it was a long judging silence, with the main altar showing a row of seats for the nobles. Amarantha and a certain salamander were the only two people I could spot easily; Sylphis, Zechariah and Tanuya were lost in the crowd.

I saw the little chieftain climb out of her seat and slowly walk toward the gong but instead, I decided to concentrate on my foe that was, just like me, slowly making her way toward the center. As the teenager voice boomed, amplified by magic; I simply zoned out when I saw the champion battle attire. During our last duel, she was wearing relatively light armor, focusing on offense with her flamberge but here… things were completely different.

Salamanders are naturally bigger and stronger than lizards, easily equals to Onis with brown-red colored scale and a big, nasty flaming tails; her entire body was concealed in a bronze colored battle armor filled to the brims with strange symbols that, at first, I thought to be ceremonial, some kind of ‘’champion uniform’’ but nobody, not even the closest seated, could really would make out anything, even the salamander face was concealed in a closed helmet – her eyes however, were shining gold and her hands supported a large, straight two handed sword whose entire blade had the color of obsidian.

More importantly I could –feel- something emanating from this equipment, a strange prickling sensation dispersed itself in my guts, as if a tiny wave had rung an internal alarm bell.

‘’Magic…?’’

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‘’Yep, everything she got is magical. Girl herself hasn’t embraced Focus tough.’’

Meanwhile, the Onis finished her spiel, a valorous speech about honoring ones traditions, ancestor and duty to the land – we may be at war but that doesn’t mean discarding honor. Definitely a good one, too bad I wasn’t listening.
Then the gong boomed the sound itself churned my guts and that’s when cheers finally erupted from the dutiful crowd – and the champion lifted her sword one handed whilst I took a defensive stance; there was well over ten meters between us…
Then I felt a tickling sensation and the salamander, quite simply, erupted in flames.

So sudden and intimidating that the entire arena fell silent as they witness this literal human torch casually take a conservative stance, slowly inching her way closer; the entire surface of her armor was burning, even her dark blade somehow managed to catch on fire, as if it had been made of charcoal.

‘’She must have had an amulet of some kind. So about that Focus, still want to keep it as a gift?’’

I heard Aurore grumble…

>[Current distance is VERY FAR (10+ meters)
>You are in perfect health
>How do you wish to approach your foe? [I can give you suggestion as QM, but of course I'll sneak some traps in there]

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>>36380917
Why would you want to harm Succubus? They are the most loving girls out there!

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>>36381087
Circle the arena.
Watch her moves.
Defensive mode for now.

>>36381121
Purge at every opportunity.

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>>36381199
What about the Demon Lord and her daugther? Both are on your side

>>36381087
keep distance, let her tire out dodge or parry never block

>>36381238
Purge after they've outlived their usefulness

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>>36381307
>>36381199
Defense it is.

>>36381363
But it's been established that killing the Demon Lord would be very bad

>>36381389
i think that guy might be new to the quest

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>>36381411
Hopefully I'll be finished with some sheet/info dumps for characters by next thread

>>36381461
cool

>>36381121
One must be discretionary in their crusade for justice. Some demons are not a real threat, others wipe the minds of sentient creatures transforming them into mere beasts of lust and warp minds to betray even their most cherished comrades. It is these that must burn.

The rest are free to live happily however they want.

>>36381363
The daughter's an engineer, and Daiyu's end will trigger another Ascension war for the Demonic Throne which could end very badly for everyone especially if Deruella is still alive when it happens.

Not only is her ideology diametrically opposed to our own, she's got powerful allies and potentially huge amounts of resources. She's practically a shoe-in if another war happened (hence, why Siggy chose to save Daiyu's life by linking with her).

In other words, them outliving their usefulness is unlikely.

>>36381461
That'd be cool.

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‘’Bloody…’’

I preferred to keep silent with the rest of my curse; this walking humanoid shape felt like a human torch or some kind of elemental, she was making a slow, deliberate stride toward me and in turn I kept my distance, rounding the arena while twirling the scimitar – I’ve already thoroughly warmed up beforehand but I definitely felt overwhelmed right now, this damnable burning, hulking salamander simply marched without a care in the world and I’d obviously find myself cornered; one can only march in circle for so long.

‘’Mustn’t be easy to breath in those flames’’

The crowd was, thankfully, still silent, obviously taken aback by the magic; I tried my best to spot some kind of hints to reinforce the slime hypothesis but the fire was simply too thick to even find the champion eyes.
…dammit she hasn’t showed any opening, she’s just walking a straight slow line until I’m in range of that fire sword.

>Distance is now FAR [5 Meters]
>You are in perfect health
>Your foe is taking a defensive stance in her approach. What do you do?

>>36381087
Activate our full armor, enter Focus.
Approach carefully, take advantage of being in Focus to determine the right time to strike.

>>36381591
this no that it applies>>36381681
and a faint attack to the non-dominate side kicking up sand to make a smoke screen

>>36381798
So you're seconding it with an additional or altered plan of attack? Your words confuse me.

>>36381591
Activate our armor and enter Focus. Close distance and engage. Feint an attack to get her to react, deflect with our shield and riposte with our sword.

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>>36381681
>>36381841
Will do. I won't ask for a roll quite yet

>>36381831
altering it

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‘’So much for surprise’’

‘’Right, right, careful now’’

Thankfully, I took some time to practice entering and exiting Focus this morning; cant’ say I’ve mastered it yet but it certainly got easier to take hold of this ‘’internal energy’’ of mine and now was no different, I could already feel adrenaline surging through my vein and my heart was hammering my chest from the sheer intimidation projected by the salamander.

I –felt- the veins in my body bulge, a piercing sky-blue, brilliant liquid invaded and painted them anew and my momentary panic vanished, kept at bay by the steel walls of discipline, I was already channeling for my armor while the salamander simply kept on walking my way; three seconds is a very, very short time and my body was covered in the blink of an eye as I imagined my protective armor. Stronger than steel, perfectly fitting for my body with an half open helmet covering my head save for the face; I didn’t bother for aesthetic, the entire thing look like a giant block of ice from afar but I knew very well how effective it was thank to yesterday little stunt; the pauldron stopped a crossbow bolt effortlessly.

Now… trying to properly identify the menace was another task; the fire was strong, nearly crackling and while I could spy some of the bronze the obsidian seemed to have completely disappeared, as if the salamander weapon didn’t have any kind of skeleton for its fires. Thankfully, it was very easy to remember its length during my earlier glances and from memory deducing the blade length was surprisingly easy; the entire weapon itself measured 175 centimeters, making mid-to-close range the danger spot.

«4 meters»

A little hole was left for Aurore to communicate and I heard her breathe out loudly as I tightened the grip on my scimitar before the sounds of the fire trampled everything

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«Now!»

I immediately changed my stance and charged and the champion reacted very fast; she knew the range of her weapon, while I plotted a feint the range difference made it that I could only do so with some footwork (namely, kicking sad in her direction) but her armor obviously covered her and, holding her blade by the end of the handle (instead of the usual closer grip) she trusted directly toward my shielded side.

I expected her to aim for exposed vitals, thankfully Focus allowed me to at least predict where the blade would strike and whatever I had in mind was abandoned for defense; the full muscle mass of a two meter tall lizardwoman crashed directly in the middle of my shield and I had to brace for impact, making me slide on the sand – this would have been a perfect opportunity to escape if it weren’t for the fire in the blade and the craftiness of the wielder who immediately stepped forward, pushing her own blade upward to slide on my shield; in turn I put the protection overheard to avoid being stabbed in the neck and denying the weapon any score on my person, which made my tall, burning foe press down –hard- to lock me in place, using her full superior strength to keep my arm and shield pinned.

If it weren’t for my magical armor, the skin of my back would be burning right now; it’s a good thing that magical ice isn’t liable to melt unless I say so.

However… that was quite the predicament. This sudden test of strength wasn’t easy to shoulder at all, the fire was hot – so damn incredibly hot- that breathing was hard. I can’t even imagine how she must fell inside that metal.

>Current distance is MID-CLOSE [Less than 2 meters]
>You are in perfect health
>Currently locked in stalemate, denying the flaming two-hander with your shield. You are also too far to be able to strike with your scimitar.
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgXZz52dWkg

>>36382562
We experimented with changing the shape of our arm yesterday.
Didn't that also include extending our fingers and hand into a claw?
Our arm and sword doesn't reach the Salamander now, but if we shifted the shape, could we extend our arm to punch the Salamander in the head with an armored ice fist then drag our sword down to a chink in her armor?

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>>36382698
Not quite, you could make a very fast spell thank to the boost of Aurore making it near instant, you'd be using the arm as a base for a ''fist pillar'' that'd hopefully ocnnect, with all inertia brought from the speed and distance of the cast.

You could combine this with your scimitar for a slashing strike but you are liable to lose the weapon completely because your magic isn't elastic. It's a one way street - Forward.

>>36382562
roll to her off hand side and press the attack the disengage and keep moving

>>36382757
i need more info before i suggest any think do we have the shield over head

>>36382562
So is she locking us down with the point or pressing on us with the blade portion of her sword? If it's the point did it imbed in the shield?

If she is indeed pushing on us with all her might we could turn the shield to an angle quickly as we roll towards her bad side, using the moment she's thrown off balance to either disengage or go for an attack.

>>36382757
Just to be sure, she's pushing down on us, pinning our shield to us, correct?

Can we calculate the optimum angle to deflect her flamberge?
To angle our shield so that her sword continues downward while we rotate our shield to be on top, putting our weight down on her sword and using her attempt to recover (either by bring the sword back up or by continuing the motion and sliding the sword out to the side and coming back for a return cut)to get in closer and aim our sword point at her face, searching for the eye-slit on her helmet.

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>>36382980
Yes, your shield arm is pinned, the salamander is pushing to try and get the flame of her sword to cook some of your flesh. Thankfully the armor is preventing that, for now.

>>36383008
>Just to be sure, she's pushing down on us, pinning our shield to us, correct?

Yes.
>Can we calculate the optimum angle to deflect her flamberge?
Yes, but she's severly out muscling you.
>To angle our shield so that her sword continues downward while we rotate our shield to be on top, putting our weight down on her sword and using her attempt to recover (either by bring the sword back up or by continuing the motion and sliding the sword out to the side and coming back for a return cut)to get in closer and aim our sword point at her face, searching for the eye-slit on her helmet.

This is possible, yes, but the eyeslit will be hard to get with your scimitar.

All these suggestions will require 1d20.

The deflection and spell don't have any modifier, hwoever this one >>36382822 will give you a +2 to your d20

Rolled 5 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>36383111
lets go with this then>>36382822

she will beat us in a straight up fight lets do hit and run

>>36383111
Deflecting to her off-hand side will give a +2, or disengaging will give a +2?

Rolled 19 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>36383111
Let's see here...

>>36383220
no one fucking roll we done

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>>36383214
Rolling away is +2

>>36383220

You guys are very lucky I stick to my roll policy

Rolled 2 + 2 (1d20 + 2)

>>36383229
>no one fucking roll
What'cha gonna do about it?

>>36383254
ASK WHY ruin a 21

Colorquix walks into the scene...
"What the fuck is going on here and how do I join you?"

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>>36383277
There is a long and short answer.

Short one is to simply stick around and see if you can help us survive this encounter.

Longer one would be reading the summary of this great fellow
>>36379783

>>36383265
Because I was banking on a nat 1.
One day I will get it and it will be glorious! Tears will flow and waifus will die.

>>36383358
why kill them

>>36383420
For the tears?

>>36383614
but that's why PGQ exists

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She’s taller, bigger, stronger than me and there’s no more bigger evidence now, locked in this patented tug-of-war; her flaming blade scratched the surface of the shield and I silently thanked the blacksmith for making a durable piece, if the champion had more élan I’d have a shattered arm but she was also sticking to her position, deflection was possible but also risky and the weapon kept on slowly inching its way toward my back, the fire already licking my armor.

Thankfully magical armor also covers the back.

This wasn’t a match I could win, a sideway glance gave me the perfect idea to escape and I acted upon it in seconds, too much time already passed trying to deduct anything else. I raised my arm to my best of ability and the Salamander retaliated by pressing down; that’s when I bent my knees and my back, the armor being perfectly flexible enough for such a movement and jumped sideway, bracing my shoulder and tail for a quick roll while the weapon missed by an inch; I couldn’t quite see what happened but I felt the heat graze me, the blade itself touched my armor before my jump, which carried me to my feet than to momentum and I immediately escape a pursuing quick chop from the flaming champion, the fire of the blade sizzle as I, once again, used my shield for cover; this time the connection of her pivot strike made me slide on the sand again, and I immediately created distance between us, safely escaping her.

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Duels aren’t usually to the death but this time, she’s not making excuses or showing off. Het stances focus on countering, deflective and very quick strikes, no large amateurish slashes, she’s fast with chops, deadly stabs and keeping her center of balance whole, using the full length of the blade to deny my advance and protected by a deadly aura of fire.

This is no easy rematch.

>Current distance is MID-FAR (3meters)
>You are in perfect health.
>Your foe is concentrating on reacting to your movement and for now, isn’t approaching – the two of you are locked in a staring match.
>You can try talking with Aurore

>>36383717
advice from Aurore on a plan of attack

>>36383717
Separate for more distance from the Salamander, whisper to Aurore on how we should attack, if we can use the shapechanging of her arm to our advantage.

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With this new lull I could hear some noises from the crowds; most of them seemed disappointed and I couldn’t help but smile in amusement. This fight wasn’t exactly spectacular but it certainly was a deadly one, now the human torch was standing still and straight, holding her sword horizontally as it kept on burning loudly while I twirled the scimitar in my hand – the blade felt increasingly useless.

‘’Any ideas’’

I whispered toward the slime as I kept on staring toward the champion who made a slow step forward; I reacted by stepping back.

‘’Projectiles. That lizard doesn’t have focus; she’d have deduced you’re escaped and tackled you down otherwise. Her defenses are too good and her weapon trump yours, you ought to outlast her, she’s obviously waiting for you; I doubt she’s having a fun time breathing inside that inferno.’’
Certainly, my foe didn’t seem too eager to carry the fight, this time taking another stance; the salamander brought her blade toward her face, gripping some of its burning base while bending her knee, tip following my center, slowly inching her way closer to unleash a lethal stab or slice. Her approach was slow, methodical and once combat began, she shifted to efficiency and lethality, her speed wasn’t great, she was simply amazing at controlling her weapon.

‘’Wouldn’t I cook from the inside?’’

‘’No pain no gain, you need to pressure her, that’s what I think anyway.’’

…

>Distance is MID-FAR [3 meters]
>No change in health.
>No change in battle.

>>36384092
I thought we couldn't launch projectiles. We gonna use Aruore as a kind of crossbow arm or something?

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>>36384174
No, it means creating projectiles of your own and throwing them.

>>36384208
Is Athena any good at that? I know Sylphis isn't, but can Athena throw good? If not, would focus enable her to compensate for terrible mundane skill?

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>>36384228
She's listed as Trained in her character sheet. So yes, she's pretty good, especially with javelins and throwing axes.

>>36384258
soo we can make some javliens and throw them our self not magically like siggy does

>>36384208
Can we use our right arm/Aurore to produce ice daggers that we can throw?

Keep our distance, try aiming for the Salamander's eye-slit on her helmet. Using our Focus, we should be able to calculate her projected attempt to dodge/deflect, and throw a second, then a third dagger immediately to take advantage of knowing where she's going to likely dodge/deflect.

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>>36384294
Yeah that's Athena handicap. Can't launch anything at a distance, only by using her body as point of origin.

>>36384309

Aiming for the slit is pretty hard because the Salamander is blanketed in flames, sometime you lose sight of her face entirely.

>>36384309
Also Aurore can be used for that purpose, yeah.

So right now the popular option is to take aurore advice and keep a distance?

Roll 1d20

>>36384092
Can we just stab a bitch?
Having the enemy at 3 meters makes fiddling around with creating projectiles and then winding up for a throw somewhat counterintuitive.

>>36384333
Can we see any visible kinks in the armor, any places not covered or at the very least look thin or otherwise vulnerable?

>>36384378
No
>>36384365
you can try, approaching her isn't going to be very easy tough, as you've seen from your first attempt.

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>36384356
love me dice gods

>>36384418
They do indeed love you anon.

Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>36384356
We really should have stocked up on weapons in the beginning. It's not like we couldn't have brought all the stuff and then dropped it if we needed more mobility.

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>>36384426
Too much equipement would have interferred with making your armor tough, and it saved you some nasty burns.

>>36384418

Stop having A rank Luck

>>36384378
>kinks in the armor
Takes on a whole new meaning when monster girls are involved.

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>36384356
Here goes nothing.

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>>36384451
But INH, Siggy has A-Rank luck and he fused his soul to hers. Would that not also grant her A-Rank luck?

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>>36384510
I'm not listing luck for a reason

>>36384548
Well it's a difficult thing to list really. After all, ultimately it's all up to the dice gods. You can say they're as lucky or unlucky as you want, the dice are the final arbiter.

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I think I might have to stop here tonight, had a bit of a relapse with my health and not feeling too good but nothing serious, I'll be fine and dandy after some rest, so continuing tomorrow will happen.

Sorry about that but its nto over, far from it. I'll go for three days straight if we need to.

>>36384840
ok sleep well

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>>36384870
Much too early to sleep, I'm just not feeling good enough to write anymore.

>>36384888
well feel better then

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>>36384938
I plan to, sorry for this setback folks, I really need to take better care of myself but tomorrow we'll have our thread, too.

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>>36384888
Hope you get well then.
Thanks for the thread.

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>>36385142
This is not how you treat Ran.

I'm used to these ups and down, nothing to worry about. We'll have our tomorrow thread as scheduled

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>>36384965
Then rest up my good sir. I just hope our luck holds. The enemy is cheating hardcore with this "flame on" Salamander Torch BS they got going against us (likely from the nobles who just can't stand to be shown for what they are). They just can't stop cheating to see Athena dead it seems, damn nobles.

Good thing Athena gained a cheat of her own with that sacrifice she made. Mentat mode baby, bitches jealous of Athena's focus swagger.

>>36385169
She looks rather happy. Not sure if Tsu is even capable of that. Too much willpower to be broken in damn near any way. A pity her resolve makes it likely impossible to make her ahegao.

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>>36385169
>This is not how you treat Ran.
Yes it is!

>>36385210
>Not sure if Tsu is even capable of that.
And this right here is why we can't have nice things. Like fox aheagos.

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>>36385210
>>36385236

I have it o ngood authority that every single one ofthe girls are too strong wileld t obe ntr'D into ahegao.

You should feel lucky.

>>36385272
I do. NTR sucks and our girls got standards. Even if you can fuck like a god, can you talk, console, cuddle, and just be plain entertaining enough to hang out with like one as well? Sex ain't everything. A chosen mate is chosen for reasons beyond mere pleasure.

Even Cassanova got that. He even said that speaking with a woman can be just as great if not greater then bedding them. He knew what was up.

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>>36385329
do you think NTR happen in this setting?

>>36385354
Of course it does, except that it's the man being fucked into submission.
At least, until the original woman also gets Corrupted and then gets her man back.

>>36385272
Nobody said anything about ntr though. I just want her to be fucked senseless, until her carefully crafted veneer crumbles and she's left wallowing in pleasure like the base creature that she and all monsters are.

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>>36385354
Sometimes. Not bloody often though. If they did, it was likely a succubus or something utilizing Charm magic. In which case, can't fault them.

Mind Controlled people are exempt from moral fault owing to their domination. To MC someone is to make them your puppet. The sins of the puppet are the fault of the puppeteer, not the unfortunate puppet.

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>>36385433
>>36385415
Despair isn't pleasure tough! Gotta have hope!

>>36385422
That's too bad anon-san, she's simply too old a fox for that to happen.

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>>36385496
So you say. But us veterans know you. You are very much like Kotomine. You seek to REJOICE!

I get that, but denying you that is a kind of goal for us players in turn. Everyone seeks a worthy adversary.

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>>36385589
I'm too soft to be Kotomine.

>>36385496
tsu likes to bite more then anything

>>36385496
>she's simply too old a fox for that to happen.

That's exactly it. After seeing and doing so many things she'd rather not have, all the schemes, all the harsh decisions, all of the sacrifices and her plans are ever precariously close to crashing down around her fluffy ears.
Just imagine how tempting it must be at times. The little voice at the back of her mind, nagging to throw it all away, let the world fend for itself for just once and instead of playing her thankless role indulge in all that she denied herself.

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>>36385652
And ame is a slut

>>36385637
Kotomine was surprisingly soft. He felt unimaginable joy from witnessing suffering, yet he just couldn't accept at face value.

That's what made him interesting. He could only feel joy in evil, yet also hated evil. He was the very definition of a paradox, a complete contradiction.

>>36385678
I'm quite OK with that. Ame has needs, needs Siggy must fulfill as a "faithful" husband. That Kumiho is such a wonderful girl, why complain?

>>36385678
Well she's a fox, duh. Comes with the fluffy bits.

>>36385678
like any one will do kind or 8 hours later kind

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>>36385675
Tsu isn't really tempted by lewdness. What she really want to do is to indulge in motherhood, especially by taking care of lost young girls and doing her best to give them a home.

Just look at her circle of retainers

>>36385694
>I'm quite OK with that. Ame has needs, needs Siggy must fulfill as a "faithful" husband. That Kumiho is such a wonderful girl, why complain?

Let's just say she'll make Siegfried understand that their marriage isn't going to be monogamous.

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>>36385738
It's more that she tend to attach herself quickly to people and like to take it to the bedroom, she's always been living ''in the moment'' more than anything.

>>36385809
So she's more of the 'approximately a thousand dicks' kind.

>>36385809
ya but siggy is a very greedy man he might get pissed and an angry dimi-god is not a good thing

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>>36385849
Depend, she's a pretty good judge of character and is surrounded by women in a monster island.

Not a whole lot of dicks around.

>>36385867

Ah! Having them at each other throat over her bad habits? Now that'll be fun to write.

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>>36385743
>What she really want to do is to indulge in motherhood

Man, if they get through this alive it will be fluffy daughterus, won't it? All the fluffy daughterus.

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>>36385939
Siggy would make a pretty damn good spymaster too, which means she'd be able to take break, leading into making an orphanage.

No seriously, that's her most selfish little dream. Taking care of lost childs and teenagers is jsut her thing

For some reason I feel tempted to write a modern time spin off...

>>36385900
if Ame did hurt siggy emotionaly not only would she have mylen and siggy but an angry mother earth is a very bad group of enemy's to make

she might want to reevaluate her ways

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>>36385971
Lover spats aren't driven by logic.

>>36385900
She's a clever girl. I'm sure she can ungenerous up some.

>>36386030
*scrounge up
Damn auto correct.

>>36386005
true

but if such a thing dose happen i can write a line that would utterly destroy her and make her fall to her knees crying

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>>36386040
>>36386030
She's got a loyal maid that need introduction when things calm down

You make it sound like she goes hunting, it's the reverse that has to happen.

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>>36386057
Shoot my friend, she can take some abuses.

>>36386065
ya but not the truth

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>>36386076
You'd be suprised. Now shoot.

>>36386101
Let's just say I want a happy end. I want it all to end joyously. So I want that. A very simple end...

>>36386101
every step she ever taken by living in the moment caused more problems for every one else like Athena losing her arm over trusting her servants losing people that ware cared for like blastlia, hiding information that caused a foolish man to try something very much in his nature nearly killing him.

she is just a bad leader

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>>36386005
>>36386065
It's like you enjoy reminding me about Dakini getting axed.

>>36386185
that ending pissed me off
almost as bad as Cerberus's ending

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>>36386185
I've taken a real shine to her too, to the point of coming up with yet another 9 tailed fluff that became very, very important in the background.

>>36386182
I don't think she's going to be too upset over that, depend on how and when its delivered since it's only half-true at best, altough Ame is likely to overlook her own strengths anyway.

>>36386242
dont worry i will refine it and i always know when to deliver it the big thing about siggy tho is Siggy will pay any thing to get what he wants

>>36386242
>I don't think she's going to be too upset over that
Well as a ruler she should be. Damn, where's a revolution when you need one.

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>>36386330
She's far from being a worthless queen, actually got more charisma than Tsu but isn't as savy in term of subterfuge.

Sure she could improve, but deposing her outright is hasty.

First and last bump from me.

Morning bump

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>>36385965
If everything we want goes through we're pretty much on the edge of the industrial revolution. Magitek, gotta love it. As the Ferengi say, Peace is good for business. War is good for business too, both are rules of acquisition. Just depends on what you're going for. We're going for the happy end. So we want peace. For the reasons peace is good for business.

Peace is conductive to things like magical toasters, plumbing, computers, documentaries, highways, novels, and all things not involving death and destruction. If we get our way we're heading into Yu-shibu territory.

A world which no longer needs heroes to slay the demon lord in an endless cycle. A world that is finally at peace after so many eons of struggle and suffering... I hope we don't have to lose Siggy and the gang to get it, but it seems we'll have to at least risk it all on the altar of chance.

But hey, the bigger the risk the bigger the win.

afternoon bump

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>>36385743
Well it ain't like he's gonna be monogamous either. Already pledged to two different women, was already in a relationship with a third, and seeks to be with damn near every girl who has fought by his side.

Ah, the difficulties of harem control. At least he and Ame will have something unique in common to bitch and talk about.

One hour or two for the quest, see you guys soon.

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>>36390890
>industrial revolution. Magitek
>Peace is conductive to things like magical toasters, plumbing, computers, documentaries, highways, novels, and all things not involving death and destruction. If we get our way we're heading into Yu-shibu territory.

>>36395646
Trying to correct the imbecile is pretty much impossible, especially when INH encourages it.

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>>36395646
>>36395879
What? I thought everyone wanted peace, isn't that the end goal? Besides such things as magitek are inevitable. People want progress, you can't expect a type of medieval stasis to last forever unless you actively enforce such a status quo.

Eventually, things progress. Why would you want them not to? Today even many poor folk enjoy conveniences once only available to nobility. You want to go back to the time of peasants and hours of toil without any real free time or chance of upward mobility because of some romanticism of the past and/or fantasy?

And hell, we already own a magitek mech and the church just discovered the wonders of gunpowder. Wrecked Ame and Kyorn's shit with it too. Cannons son. Everything else is logically in the pipeline.

>>36396121
No, you stupid motherfucker.
Those advances were a direct result of resources invested in military technologies for the purpose of war.

Computers, even mechanical ones like Babbage's Difference Engine, were developed for military applications first, and only found civilian applications decades later, after the military-contracted engineers and scientists moved to the civilian sector bringing their military knowledge with them.

The high-precision machining tools so essential for industrial machines were first developed because of their necessity in creating improved weapons.

Highways were first developed as a means of quickly moving troops around; this was true of the Roman roads and also true of modern highways and railways.

Peacetime doesn't lead to an Industrial Revolution, wars and the need to keep a military armed with high-precision machined weapons that a cottage industry can't supply leads to industrialization.

That's not even covering the bottlenecks in the manufacturing process that magitek would have.

In summary, we would love to have this setting modernized, but the way you set out to do it is assbackwards and shows how ignorant you are.

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Now now, slow down on the bickering. The update will be soon.

>>36396429
That's not even getting into the economic precursors needed for an industrial revolution, or that it still took decades and centuries for consumer goods to reach a majority of the population.

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The next course of action was to create a larger distance, with her current pace the champion was obviously trying to rile me up or simply approach until I’m in range of her sword, thus the three meters quickly increased to five when I took several back steps, forcing the salamander upright and change her stance yet again, this time simply holding her blade past her waist as she eyed me carefully; I could sometime spot her eyes amongst the flames but the slit had this irritating tendency to disappear inside the fire.

Without a second scabbard, I couldn’t keep the scimitar and slowly, I crouched and planted the weapon in the ground to my best ability; this rather sudden move seemed to catch the crowd attention as much as the Salamander who simply stood still – for a few seconds I simply stood still, analyzing the distance, listening to the crackles of flames; she certainly looked like a giant human torch, standing still and dutiful – perhaps this was the true potential of the champion, she’s a worthy foe no doubt about it.

Using the blue arm as point of origin meant quick spell casting, with a good five meters now separating us, the Salamander made the grave mistake of actually waiting; I’ve often seen Siegfried throw wicked spikes from the ether, the best I can do is make my own ammo and when I remember the projectiles in the training room, it already found itself in my hand in a blink, throwing it was only a matter of reawakening old muscle memory. Proper stance, proper weight, proper movements and of course enhanced aiming brought by Focus, if she not going to come to me, then I’ll force that option and when I saw her crouch slightly, shifting into immediate evasion, I knew the slime advice was a good one (even if it might be pricy in energy…or mana?)

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This time it was much closer, the javelin tickled her protective flaming aura as she was forced to crouch low else it landed on her right shoulder; she then proceeded to charge forward, barely impeded by her armor and that’s when I knew I had the perfect chance to score thank to the mental enhancement of Focus. I knew my own strength, deducting the speed of my throws took a few tries and now I had a little idea of the champion speed thank to our earlier bout combined with this far observation – that’s when I created the fastest weapon I could think off through Aurore own enhancement.

Throwing axes are more of a central and northern specialty, forming it was simply second nature thank to all the hours of practice I had in the past and in the split second she saw the weapon in my hand, the champion paused her advance; she had already covered three meters while I tried my best to keep my distance, my axe flew in a diagonal arc directly for her throat – she retaliated by shifting her blade, blocking the projectile, making a large metallic ‘’tink’’ resonate in the arena.

I simply threw another, this time aiming for something a little more horizontal and the Champion turned to offer her shoulder – the axe dug into the armor, I heard the clear breaking of metal followed by a loud, cavernous painful roar.
First blood. She wasn’t down for the count.

>Current position is FAR [4 meters]
>You are in perfect health
>Your foe has shown impressive speed and can close the distance faster than you can make it while throwing; even so, you’ve landed a hit. What is your strategy?

>>36397263
Which arm did we hit, left or right?

>>36397319
Left shoulder

>>36397345
Ok, I assume that's her bad hand but just to be sure, is she right or left handed? Athena should know given previous knowledge.

>>36397263
Circle around, staying on her wounded side, creating more distance.
Once we make more distance, make to start throwing again.
Use it as a trap to get the Salamnder to charge us, drawing the second sword and striking towards her wounded shoulder while we use the shield to deflect her flamberge's strike.

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>>36397373
Right handed.

>>36397493
So make some distance and bait with projectiles, then go in close?

>>36397563
>So make some distance and bait with projectiles, then go in close?
That's the idea. If she doesn't charge, we keep plinking at her till something gets through. If she charges we go for a deflection and riposte.
With her fire enchantment and reach advantage, we can't attack otherwise.

Does the break in her armor seem to have caused the magic fire to start burning her?

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>>36397667
>Does the break in her armor seem to have caused the magic fire to start burning her?

No. The aura is still as strong as ever.

I'll go with this suggestion. You'll have to roll for your next action.

>>36397667
I'm down for this. We got a good injury on her, time to leverage it for all it's worth!

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>36397740
No modifiers?

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>>36397825
I was saying you'd have to roll after my update but then you go and give a 20...

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>>36397825
YEAH BITCH!!!!

>>36396429
>we would love to have this setting modernized

Maybe you would, Personally I'm sick and tired of people who go "muh industrial revolution" on any fantasy setting they get their greasy mitts on. That they often don't even realize the unfeasibility of their plans is just the cherry on top of the bullshit sundae.

Rolled 7 (1d20)

>>36397740

>>36397863
The instant you say roll someone's gonna do it. Look at it this way, now you can do both updates at the same time. Thank fuck he rolled 20

>>36397973
I'll try to leave a choice of action, even if it's going to be super obvious.

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Now was the time to retreat, while the enemy was dealing with the pain the façade was just that; people like her know how to react despite this setback and I heard something amidst the flames, trampled by the sound of fire as I quickly ran back to create more distance with a renewed javelin in hand, this one was for prodding again and I threw it immediately after taking my position – again the champion evaded, albeit with some difficulty, her previous relaxed and countering mindset completely forgotten as she crouched just low enough for the projectile to miss her wounded side, then immediately ran forward as I, once more, began walking back – keeping around her wounded side was much easier said than done, she was shouldering the two-hander on her right shoulder now yet didn’t seem the least bit handicapped by the pain of her wound.

If she had fracture of any kind, she sure as hell didn’t show. As I did my best to anticipate her movement, the salamander was forced to jump sideway in a crude lunge, making my weapon miss completely and that’s when I reverted to an axe – despite the storm she kicked up it was clearly a golden opportunity! However, something prevented my throw, I heard something unusual.

An inferno – when fire is given fuel and air, it grows and roars like an angry bear; the entire aura of the magical armor seemed to grow thick, the human silhouette momentarily disappeared and I couldn’t see if she was still on the ground or standing up, however something was sticking out, breaking the near-perfect rectangle of flame as the fire was visibly sucked in, all of it heralded by a potent surge of ‘’power’’.

‘’A blast!’’

Aurore scream was late; it was a huge forward ball of flame – Focus at least, allowed me to detail this spell

>You will be struck in less than a second
>The fireball is an effective sphere of 2 meters in circumference.
>What do you do?

>>36398482
We could dodge away. A leap forward and rolling forward would get us closer to the salamander and avoid the fireball.

A leap and roll to the side will get us out of the fireball's path.

I suppose there isn't time to throw the ice axe we have into the fireball to cause a premature explosion?

>>36398482
So is this a fireball or more of a stream of fire. That's important.

>>36398662
It's a stream of flame with a big sphere, sorry for the lack of precision.

>>36398655

No time to throw, dodging could also be iffy, it't a pretty big ball.

Also you shield is about the size of a Viking one, in metal instead of wood.

>>36398729
The metal would likely melt or heat up and deform.
How big of a shield could our right arm turn into.
If dodging is iffy, countering a flame blast with an ice shield might have a better chance of succes.

>>36398793
You can make it as big as you want, just remember the three second handicap.

>>36398482
We have focus and a crit banked. How big is this ball? If a quick jump to the side will get us out of most of its radius we could block the part that we're not out of and be in good position to attempt another throw.

If that's not possible we'll just have to dig in and withstand it, forming an Ice Shield behind our current one because it probably won't survive the full force of those flames for long, but should buy enough time to form the ice shield.

>>36398870
But the shield would be made by the right arm, isn't that supposed to have no handicap?
The only thing Athena might be holding with the right hand right now is an Ice Axe, that she can drop for a second, magical ice, shield.

>>36398909
Oh, yeah she's not holding anything in the slime arm. Creating another shield fast enough to stop the ball... well, you've got a 20 in bank.

>>36398907

Jumping is feasible too, but you can't cover the distance in a single one, good thing Athena got a shield. Reinforcing your shield is also perfectly fine.

So we've got three choines.
>Make another shield with your slime arm and dig in.
>Jump away while trying your best to cover your body with your shield.
>Dig in and whistand the strike while enhancing your shield and repairing damage.

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I'll be making a roll for a choice if nothing happen

>>36398986
>Make another shield with your slime arm and dig in.

>>36398986
Welp, we can't get out of it like I'd like so reinforce the shield. This attack will likely leave her open afterwards. We can throw then.

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>>36399160
>>36399132
Very well, diggin in it'll be. You don't have time to wind up a throw before the projectile connect with you

>>36399270
Oh no that's not my intent. After the fire stops we throw. Poor Salamander's probably gonna be out of breath after this. Wide open and ready to receive our love. In the form of an Ice Axe to the chest!

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Snap decisions have always been the realm of instincts and memory more than proper judgement; I could feel the heat encroaching like the jaw of death, with nowhere to go, nowhere to invade… the sheer suddenness and savagery of the flames rooted me on the spot. Being engulfed would be lethal, in the end my spell wasn’t so much a counter as it was an honest will to live – Aurore was of the same mind.

I didn’t even had time to drop to my knees – hopefully the armor will be good enough – as my right limb literally transformed into an identical shield to my left one, not even fully stopping its metamorphosis when I put both items forward to stop the projectile and the connection was harsh indeed; air it may be, I had to brace my legs because I slid quite a few inches on the sand while the fire roared in defiance – sticking to the metal, which grew hot and uncomfortable and I reinforced its foundation by cooling it with ice, for a moment I feared the worst, that the fire was somehow intelligent and would reach around the shields to cook me alive like some kind of liquid.

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Thankfully everything was over when it began, that’s when I heard the telltale click and clacks of metals heralding the champion; despite her wound she had somehow gotten up into a full charge, wielding her weapon two handed despite her wound; she screamed in rage, her loud lungs echoing a ‘’Raaaah!’’ of battle that had all the attribute of a proper war cry as she immediately swung her blade sideway toward my slightly melted shield, obviously intended to overpower my defence and; with her momentum, rage and strength, I was inclined to agree to this possibility.

I did spot something interesting; while the aura of fire still burned, her blade had reverted to its original state of obsidian.

Even so, I’m not keen on testing its sharpness.

>Current distance is MID [Less than two meters]
>You are in perfect health.
>Your enemy is growing BERSERK and is charging, intent of overpower your shields with a full strike bearing her salamander strength and weight. What do you do?

>>36399988
So she's currently charging winding up a full power blow right?

>>36400155
Yeah, Sword raised above her right shoulder while you've held your ground with your twin shields.

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>>36400227
Well then, this is most auspicious news. A full charge can't suddenly be reversed. We need to dodge and deflect as we move to her wounded side. As she's coming right for us that means moving right.

As she passes we can attempt to attack with a weapon. She'll keep going for about a meter or two before being able to double back for us. Giving us a chance to either try to gain more distance for throwing or to stand our ground and continue playing matador with her.

>>36400422
So yo uwant to meet her charge while dodging to her other side while slashing?

Do yo uwant to change your arm into a weapon, or try to take out your scimitar?

>>36399988
Since she's charging, and her sword is in position for a slam down from her right to left, we should dodge to our left, her right. That will put her sword at a bad angle to get optimum force, and turning to the right after preparing a right-left slash is difficult.
We can then close and attack her side with our right arm switched to a sword blade, and aim for her elbow to make it more difficult for her to use her weapon.

>>36400517
Wait, the charge will make dodging difficult. Is Athena capable of an accurate throw after turning around. I'm seeing the dodge/deflection happening, forming another axe and launching it at her backside before she can dodge with any real efficacy.

>>36400623
Dodge/deflection + throw will require 1d20 -1. You do have the advantage of keeping a healthy distance.

>>36400573
Closing in like this is feasible, 1d20 in this case.

Rolled 2 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>36400727
For the throw. C'mon...

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>>36400763
Well its not a natural 1 so there's that.

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>>36400763
Guys, someone else roll. I'm scared to try again.

>>36400796
The only reason there's still hope.

Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>36400727
No throw.

>>36400835
Thank you anon for rolling high.

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>>36400835
You've made your sacrifice to Lady Luck I see.

>>36400934
The dice gods are fickle, and cannot be appeased, only entertained.

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Dodging on the opposite side of her momentum is one of those thing put into the ‘’easier said than done’’ category but I didn’t had any choices; similarly Aurore caught on to my intent and already changed shape, the ice shield disappear completely to reform my arm as I immediately took a step back, then force my way on the champion diagonal side as her blade came bearing down with all the force of an angry two meter tall fire lizard, her movement alone kicked up the sands and I felt the blade graze my shoulder.

Bloody hell this is risky.

Obvious the champion committed to the strike but her blade was human sized; she had more than enough control for a return so that’s why I aimed for her side, Aurore hadn’t even fully formed the blade that’d extend from my wrist when I punched; I felt resistance, at first I simply scrapped on the armor but during this second of our movements I felt and heard a sliver of a ‘’plunge’’; I doubt I found the flesh underneath but the slime provided a vital boon in this strike; she had somehow managed to be sharp enough to pierce the Champion armor.

However…

It wasn’t a matter of being fast enough; my foe never once expected to actually land a hit, despite what must have been agonizing pain from her shoulder she abandoned her two handed grip to grasp my frozen wrist without uttering a single complain from the gash on her shoulder.

‘’Ah!’’

Unfortunately for her, Aurore and I were quite the duo – my blue limb froze over and broke in her hand.

‘’Shit!’’

No, wait that wasn’t a victory at all – power was concentrating, the surrounding air was sucked in the flames, which grew hotter and wilder, ready to burst in a lethal explosion.

>Current distance is CLOSE [Less than a meter]
>You are in perfect health
>Your foe is preparing a second blast of fire, this time using her armor – the flames are likely to form a deadly sphere that’ll go off in seconds.
>What do you do?

>>36401535
Sweet Jesus she hates us so much that she'd rather go for a mutual kill!? Any way to tell how big this boom is gonna be?

>>36401535
Leap back and run, and after getting two meters of distance begin zig-zagging, to become a moving target. Once she commits the blast, she can't move it.

>>36401663
It's not a mutual kill, the fire of her aura is going to be expunged. It's similar to what happened with her fireball.

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>>36401675
Leaping back and running?
1d20 -2

>>36401701
Damn. Oh well, is it possible to simply leap back and form one hell of a shield?

>>36401747
We can't see the puncture we made in the Salamander's side?
I was thinking that if we aim for it with Aurore again, she can extend our arm into the wound and eviscerate the Salamander from the inside. Or form a big shield inside of her body, causing her internal organs to get shredded as the shield expands.

Or, since we're so close, extend our arm to punch the Salamander in the face and try to get our fingers into her eye slit.

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>>36401794
Yes, that'll be 1d20-1.

>>36401824
No you can't see it, the Salamander is a literal inferno right now, you know where she is, but it's really, realy hot.

>>36401848
Can the ice shield made by Aurore be big enough to completely hide behind?
And what's the color of our veins right now?

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>>36401896
Yes, if yo uare willing to spend a good dose of magic.

Your veins still appear shining blue - very healthy.

>>36401937
What about leaping back and using our Focus to calculate the exact size of the shield needed to protect us, taking into account we have the ice plate armor, and using the force of the previous blast, and extrapolating how strong this one will be since it will likely extinguish the armor, and the previous blast used the fire on the flamberge, to get an idea of how strong this blast will be and the amount of shielding needed..

>>36402025
This all goes into account with the ''stand your ground'' choice.

It the end, it's still speculations.

It'll still be 1d20-1

Considering how quickly the Salamander was able to recover after using her previous blast, I don't think standing our ground will give us any kind of advantage.

Does Athena, having fought the Salamander before, and being in Focus right now, have an analysis we can consider?

>>36402193
Nothing really concrete, the blast is expected to be twice as strong comapred to the last one due to the sheer size of the incoming conflagration and you are very close to the Champion, making distance might be possible but it might simply be impossible to truly escape unscathed.

Hmm seem like activity dropped to a standstill.

Well I want to end the thread once the duel is done, so I'll stick around tomorrow too if needed.

>>36402335
So standing our ground could actually be worse, then.

Are the rolls just for success of our action, or for survivability?

>>36402536
Both

>>36402600
I still think we should run, even though it's at a higher disadvantage.
It will put us in a better position after the blast since the Salamander can recover immediately and we'd be vulnerable if we stood our ground.

>>36402627
If you want it, roll for it.

>>36402627
I'm not saying one action is better than the other, One is harder to accomplish (due to stats) and that's why I put a little modifier in there.

Rolled 15 - 2 (1d20 - 2)

>>36402677
>I'm not saying one action is better than the other, One is harder to accomplish (due to stats) and that's why I put a little modifier in there.
But that's a separate thing from an action having putting us in an advantageous position versus being in a disadvantageous position.

>>36402818
Another high roll, the dice must favor the girl but not enough to let her go entirely unscathed.

>>36402818
In this case its about the success of your action, not really gaining or losing the advantage.

So that's the role for running away? Alright.

>>36402883
After this her flame armor will go inert and she'll be out of trump cards right?

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>>36402931
Yes, same thing happened to the sword. Doesn'T mean she's a pushover tough.

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It was the simplest of instincts that motivated my proper course of action; faced by an increasingly loud pillar of pure flame, the obvious and logical course of action was to move out fast – the sound itself of the inferno was deafening, the heat had already drenched my skin in sweat – the body of the salamander had disappear in this fire and I wasn’t keen on staying, Aurore quick thinking might have just saved my life; my arm hadn’t even completely reformed itself when I took off.

Perhaps later I’ll be able to appreciate the irony of losing the same limb to her twice.

My armor didn’t slow me down and with adrenaline pumping through my veins alongside the magic and stability of Focus, I knew from sound alone I shouldn’t have time to completely escape the reach of this explosion – two meters – that’s all I could do, even the slime grew panicked, her voice shook as she screamed my name in panic ‘’Athena!’’ I heard the girl voice barely above a whisper as the flame grew more intense and loud, the salamander inferno turn into a hurricane and I immediately leveled my shield while casting; the entirely of my blue arm disappeared as Aurore took refuge in my body and I took my shield as anchor while trying to inch my way further away when the explosion happened.

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I couldn’t see for I leveled the shield to cover my head and reinforced my armor – I could feel the fuel traveling my body, magic taking its toll from an unknown source deep, deep inside me. My legs and belly grew heavy, reinforced by ice simply piling and piling upon itself while I braced, only covering 2 meters and a half; something slammed into my shield, which in turn knocked on my helmet, as if someone was pushing on the shield while layers and layers of my armor simply evaporated, only to be replaced by my casting. I was well, well past caring about saving up magic; the fire grew heavier, and I felt it go past the shield to reach around me, enveloping my body in a lethal hug , the blazes of Purgatory.

Ican’tbreatheitstoohotwhereismyairIneedtobesafeIamcookingfromtheinsidemyarmorisboilingpureheatImustbemeltingIcannotbreathewhyistheairsopainfulhelpmehelpmepleaseIcantbreatheItdoesnothurtatallbutIhavenoairhelpmeSiegfriedAmeSylphisTsukiyomi…

>Current status...
>…
>…
>To be continued tomorrow.

>>36404157
Wait a minute. As a slime, can't Aurore use our magic and climb into our mouth/nose and produce oxygen from water/ice?

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>>36404207
She can affect your body but not to THAT point. She's concentrated as a limb foremost.

>>36404269
So right now the question is, will Athena black out before the blast subsides, or will she be able to hold her breath long enough to stay on her feet?

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>>36404298
That or maybe she's cooking alive inside her armor. this was supposed to be a longer update but I've decided to leave you guys in suspense until tomorrow.

>>36404327
>she's cooking alive inside her armor
Since the armor is composed of magic ice, wouldn't that work to keep her body from cooking?

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>>36404341
Yes.
She's not having a very fun time right now, that's about it. Running away wasn't the right choice but you roleld high, so the worst hasn't happened.

>>36404157
Goddamn it. At least emotions still fuel magic right? Utter desperation saved Siggy when he made those eggs. Please tell me Athena gets that kind of boon too.

Fun fact, you have around 8 seconds of useful consciousness in a vacuum before it gets iffy. We aren't in one but it's a good benchmark for a "worst case" scenario. I doubt it'd last that long given the AoE boom that seems to be the case.

Unless she was sporting something from the age of pretenders. I doubt she was, as those are the ultimate artifacts, a type of quintessence. Such boons are not spent lightly and are VERY obvious to those in the know.

Perhaps she was so that hated that a noble handed the salamander bitch one. But that can come back to bite you in many ways. At the very least, *someone* in that large audience KNOWS the broad had a hardcore "cheat" and used it in that case. Hardly fair in a ring of honor, to use such a thing without declaring you have it.

Even if Athena dies, the fucker may have wished things had turned out differently. Some people won't take that lying down. People get assassinated for this shit.

>>36404157
Is this a salamander or a fucking inferno elemental?

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>>36404497
It's not from the Age of Pretenders, but the set itself isn't to be laughed at, as you saw.

>>36404585

She's a Salamander, but also sporting magic armor and a magic sword. In this setting, magical artefact are pretty rare and those made exclusively for battle can be fearsome.

>>36404585
I also question this, especially since we landed a solid blow to her left shoulder yet she just keeps flailing about like a mad berserker. We had to have hit an artery with that one. Bitch ought be gushing blood in that event given her actions. You can only lose so much before you become anemic and, shortly after, lose consciousness. Try going at full capacity after donating a good amount of blood. It ain't happening.

Willpower only gets you so far before biology kicks in and says no.

>>36404630
Then we lived, if only just. I can only hope we're in good enough shape to axe her face or otherwise surprise her. Wasn't expecting to come out of this unscathed, merely victorious if only in a Pyrrhic way.

Though even a Pyrrhic victory would still serve to lay groundwork for a happy ending. The purified Amarantha is quite conductive to a new world of cooperation. Beating this cheating whore and laying her out in a coffin helps that, even if it costs us her striking looks.

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>>36404719
>We had to have hit an artery with that one. Bitch ought be gushing blood in that event given her actions.

That's only assumptions, Salamanders are even strongers than Onis and have natural armor, they don't go down easy.

>>36404719
It's magic she ain't got to explain shit. If you're going to clamor for 'muh realism' I'll feel obligated to remind you that several characters of the main cast should already be six feet under too going by those rules.

>>36404784
In mundane terms yeah, ya got it. The game changes once you involve magic. Magic does the impossible. If magic was an RL thing, you really think people would die for largely preventable reasons? Just "heal" a wound, "cure" a cancer or STD, and so on. "Magic" overcomes a given reality. That's why it's called "magic", it's beyond mortal ken. Hence, why that phrase even gained purchase. You can't just "explain" magic, thus you ain't gotta explain shit. It is what it is, that's all that can be said for it really.

>>36404392
>Running away wasn't the right choice
Standing our ground so that we get hit with even more of the fire doesn't seem like the right choice either.

>>36404915
You seem to assume there were any good choices. Just sit back and REJOICE!

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>>36404915
You would have brought yourself more time to shape better defence.

It wasn't exactly a fair situation, no easy way out.

>>36404971
But you said that this wasn't about gaining or losing an advantage, only whether an action would succeed or fail.

Then you go and say that certain actions do result in advantageous or disadvantageous results regardless of success.

Are you sure you understood the original question?

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>>36405019
>Are you sure you understood the original question?

Probably not, the dc for this roll was pretty high (14) and you rolled less, I couldn't have you win but the failure itself wasn't big enough to outright kill you, so I did my best. I still need to finish the scene and present a true course of action, this first part was mostly to give some suspense.

>>36405103
So, not only will chosen actions provide advantages or disadvantages, but success or failure will also compound those advantages or disadvantages.

This is in spite of what you said before.

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>>36405228
Depend on what we understand as failure and success. When I ask for a roll, I look at the difference in numbers as well as the DC.

Our current case had us lose by a single number (DC 14 and rolled 13) so in my book it’s something like ‘’very slight failure’’, Athena didn’t manage to run fast enough out of the way of the worst, but still managed to evacuate and escape significant harm, resulting in this current situation where she was forced on the defensive.
A complete, total failure would have killed you, but the numbers simply don’t allow that. You’ve ‘’failed’’ right now, but you’ve also got a safe margin thank to the way you fought and again, the number wouldn’t allow me to kill you, so instead I went for a disadvantage due to this ‘’failure’’.

>>36405228
Different actions will yield different (advantageous or disadvantageous) results in a given situation, success or failure on said actions will further differentiate the results. News at eleven.

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>>36404157
Goddammit, useless till the bitter end.

morning bump

bump

Page 10 bump

Don't think I'll be able to pick up the thread, got a bit of a relapse in my health and not feeling too good.

>>36414689
Alright, then shall we wait for next week, then?

>>36414766
I'll still try to continue, give me two hours and I'll be back with either the update, or to confirm my previous stance.

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I'll work on closing the thread with the second half of the update I promised, I realyl wanted to be done with the duel this thread but I'll simply do a part two next week, perhaps as soon as Sunday if everything hold up.

So expect an update soonish to see how our lizard is holding up.

>>36406426
Not surprising.

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Something stirred, unlike the alien feeling of magic traveling inside my body I felt a strange ticklish sensation spreading around the nape of my neck – the torture of heat had completely disappeared, thank Mother Earth, but there was definitely something wrong. Stuck in a dark dream? No, not quite; I can hear something, the high pitched sound of the wind, as if I was high in the mountains.
Perhaps this is some kind of sleep paralysis?

>’’Wake up. They are cheering for you’’

A feminine voice barely above that of a whisper – it was familiar, in fact I knew who it was yet her name and silhouette seemed just out of reach, as if she was standing on the other side of a thin door, there was… a strong impression of gentleness, ‘’love’’ would be an adequate term; her voice filled me with warmth, feelings long evaporated by the inferno.

>‘’Go on, open your eyes’’

--

It was the large cavernous booming of hundreds of voices that made me open my eyes and finally take in a much needed breath; hot humid –needed- air filled my lungs and I almost choked from the dryness and the pain of actually being able to breathe, ears deafened by the impressed crowd as they kept on cheering. I realize that Aurore had popped back again as an arm but also I was still standing. I passed out on my feet for just a few seconds, still holding onto my shield that, by now, was more of an ice block than a proper metal circle, the magic I poured into my armor had rendered it bulky and the fire had evaporated some layers while others had deformed from the heat, yet still there was strength in my legs, I somehow kept to me feet when consciousness left me.
I felt my armor crackles and give way, a dry piece on my shoulders promptly fell as I moved my arm out of the way to observe my foe that hadn’t budged.

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She was, just like me, ignoring the screams of the crowd; with the disappearance of the aura I could finally admire the bronze-looking armor for what it was – a definite great protective piece, the damage of my axe hadn’t been as big as I thought. The gash in her shoulder looked small and painful; the movement of her arm didn’t betray fractures, only a very painful flesh wound while my previous strike graze only the flesh of her side, an obvious deep scratch on the armor made it obvious it’ll need heavy repairs.
By now the champion had also taken off her helmet and simply put on the ground, her face was thoroughly drenched in sweat and her breathing heavy and laborious, even for a non-mage the previous spell had taken a toll and now her golden eyes locked with mine and we exchanged a silent stare for the true, first time – I didn’t see any hint of hatred, in fact, the red scaled woman gave me a broad smile – and I almost felt compelled to return it.

This fight might be about politic but there was definitely something to enjoy in indulging our raw, murderous intents; warriors are trained day by day for moments like this.

Perhaps the worst of it was over, but this duel hasn't reached its conclusion yet.

>Current distance is MID-FAR [3 meters]
>You are WINDED and the color of your veins has changed, a purplish tint is now coloring the previous sky blue. You’ve spent an EXTREME amount of magic to keep yourself alive in the inferno.
>The end for tonight good folks, feel free to suggest a course of action, I’ll begin next thread with the popular choice.

Sorry for taking so long, haven't really been feeling it tonight but at least I hope you guys are satisfied with this thread.

>>36418314
Thanks for running dude. We still have enough mojo for one more axe right? Siggy still managed a spell or two in this state when he defected. Any way to flat out *know* when you're gonna burnout?

>>36418896
You still have plenty of Mojo, Athena one saving grace as a mage is the size of her batteries.

There's no real way to know, keep a close eyes to the colors of your veins - the bigger the mix with red, the more you have to worry.

>>36418965
And of course I dropped my trip

>>36418965
So once it goes full purple we're OOM or close to it and will burn if the casting continues. Good to know.

>>36419064

Yeah, watch for the intensity of the color.

>>36419094
So from this fight, I can tell Athena had no chance in hell when she fought her in the past.

>>36419618
She did actually, the champion had no magic either.

>>36418241
[x] Concede defeat, proceed to live rest of life in shame.

>>36419680
Too bad she was poisoned. Nobles tried again by gifting her with high level enchanted gear. We survived both limit breaks. So as it stands both are now winded and the Salamander and we are now both winded. Only we may still have an advantage with Mentat mode still active and enough juice to still manage a throwing axe or two. Did the blast cauterize the wound we made? It'd still hurt like hell, but is she still losing blood from it? And can the artifacts she got recharge somehow? We got a window now, can we finish this before she can subject us to further fire blasts?

>>36420531
This duel is clearly "to the death". Unless we knock the bitch unconscious somehow this can only end with one of them becoming a corpse. I'd rather it not be Athena, might trigger a save or die throw for Siggy. We need him up to stand a decent chance in the coming battles. Let's keep him alive until the finale, make his death count if nothing else.

>>36420851
>Did the blast cauterize the wound we made?

You don't know, there's no blood pouring out that you can see, only the damaged armor on her shoulder.

>And can the artifacts she got recharge somehow?

This isn't something I can answer, what IS true , is the fact blade and armor are empty of magic.

>>36421415
Best end this ASAP then. Athena is already on the edge of her mana battery. Best end this soon, before we end up like the gimped Hadraniel. She burned to see this bitch put in her place.

There's a war on tomorrow, we need everyone in top form to stand a chance at everyone we care about coming home alive.

>>36421877
Speaking of which. Remind me who's great idea was to do this when there are actual enemies to fight aplenty?

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>>36421974
Haddy hated that people were dissing on a person she considered a newly made close friend. As the embodiment of Love, she couldn't stand that. She loved Athena, and thus couldn't stomach the negative publicity directed towards her. She's honest, honorable, and strong. She has flaws though and made an understandable mistake. Why hate her for that? Why spit at her at every turn for being, well, fallible like everyone else?

Haddy is basically the crystallization of the concept of Love. A powerful thing she rejected for a long time as well, a hero of "love" is not an idealized "hero" strictly, they can't save *everyone* so are they really a hero?

It's the Shirou problem all over again. Save everyone? How? Logic states you can't, yet you try anyway? Is this laudable or laughable? It's a rather strict dichotomy, you either love or hate such people. Either you love their dedication, or hate their naivete. Not much room for middle ground.

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>>36421974
The lizards that stayed at home aren't happy with an Oni chieftain while the sorceress-Leader is in convalescence and have started some power push of their own to keep the increasingly strong cultural upheaval of the Onis down.

Basically, the way the Onis lives have started to become very popular with the lziards as a whole and this fight is a way to ''prove'' that sacred duels don't mean much anymore, contesting them isn't smart etc.

Opportunistic nobles doing their things really.

I guess you could just put this on Athena shoulder and say she should have won the first time.

>>36422143

Hadraniel state will be made clearer after the duel, I got a little something written up for that.

>>36422436
I just need her alive and able to fight in some form. She's the only "tank" we got against Orion that can really fill the role.

She holds him off to buy Siggy enough time to sacrifice a big memory and aim it carefully. We need to take his fucking head with a hardcore soul fueled Caladbolg to stand a chance at getting that bomb either disarmed or placed solidly in the middle of the cursed swamp before it goes off despite our efforts.

Would prefer the latter, I really want a viable trade route. Would enable a great deal of things. Would say more, but this ain't /pol/. Let's just say that the way things happened IRL are not the only ways they could occur and leave it at that. More than one way to make an omelet, as they say.

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>>36422563
>I just need her alive and able to fight in some form.

Well...

In other news I had a dream about MGQ set i nmodern world where everything was all right and dandy. Its incredibly tempting

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>>36423077
Indeed it is. I've had similar dreams myself. The prospect of monstergirls walking amongst us mere mortals as equals is ever so wonderful.

I wonder how far we are from an electric guitar. Any good fantasy setting (even if "modern") is quite sympathetic to Heavy Metal. Just look at damn near all Power Metal bands. It fits, can't deny it. But then, they all tend to be happy. They tend to celebrate things like justice, joy, fighting the good fight, et all in their music.

We're kinda going for that ultimate happy end despite the odds against it. Hope we pull it off, though I'm still realistic enough to doubt our prospects.

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>>36423197
I might be tempted to run a short modern AU to celebrate ToM being so old.

Oh god its been here for so long

>>36423297
Glad it has truth be told. Really enjoying all this. Keep it up man.

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>>36423297
No! Bad INH! You don't get to run spinoffs until you finish the quest first.

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>>36423411
B-but waifu war You want it, I know you do.

>>36423402
I'm jsut grateful you guys followed me. Once this arc is done, I'll start acting a little more seriously on what we've discussed a few weeks ago.

>>36423482
As if there will be any waifus left, or anyone to war over. Now git back to getting well and finish the quest.

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>>36423507
Well.. okay...but I'm still tempted!

>>36423482
Huh? Ya did say you were having problems with how things would proceed after the final battle with the church. Finally figure something out?

>>36423507
That depends on us, our decisions, and the ever fickle Dice Gods. I pray we put everyone in the right places.

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>>36423539
I really want/wanted to make a serious sidequest with Mother Earth, but then that sort of changed/evolved for something else but I've got stuff prepared concerning Deruella and Mother Earth now, I'm still on the fence about alot of things.

>>36423571
It's cool. Just don't burn out on us man, I'd really like to see this all through to the bitter end. Hopefully in a way that lends itself to a sequel. The civ type thing that could follow a type of happy end is tempting to think about. Big City in the swamp, hope we land it.

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>>36423622
I've come close to burning out a few time, the worst that'd happen would be my needing a break, that's about it.

I don't want to abandon this and there's other things I want to do as well.

>>36421974
This fight was necessary because without it a full third of the Southern forces were not committed to the war, and were brewing a civil war, not something that we could afford in the middle of the Crusade.
It is necessary to win in order to solidify not just Amarantha's rule over the Southern Oni and Lizard clans but also to commit the entirety of the South to the Commonwealth.